THE Philippines and Norway have signed an agreement to improve the flood forecasting and warning system (FFWS) for Magat Dam and to prevent loss of lives and damage to property due to floods in downstream communities.

In a statement, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Saturday the agreement was signed recently by Science Secretary Estrella F. Alabastro and Norwegian Ambassador to the Philippines Knut Solem in Manila. Prisco D. Nilo, administrator of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) and Kim Lande, country director of SN Power Philippines, witnessed the ceremony.

Under the agreement, Norway, through the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), will provide a grant of $1.52 million (approximately P71.2 million) for the improvement of existing FFWS facilities and the expansion of the monitoring facilities of the Cagayan River basin.

The project will also look into the existing dam protocols of Magat. The Philippine government will contribute a total of $199,444 (P9.3 million) for the public information drive, labor and civil works.

Of the total local counterpart, $72,680 (P3.4 million) will come from SN Aboitiz Power (SNAP)-Magat Inc. while the rest will be provided by Pagasa and the National Irrigation Administration (NIA). Total project cost is about $1.7 million (P80.6 million).

Lande said SN Power Philippines felt very strongly about the project, citing corporate social responsibility as the driving force that brought the project to Norway.

“It was very important for us to convey to the Norwegian government the merits of the project, especially in terms of mitigating loss of lives and livelihood in the downstream communities,” he said.

Meanwhile, SNAP-Magat Inc. chief executive officer Emmanuel Rubio emphasized the significance of the agreement in the aftermath of the powerful storms that devastated northern Luzon in October.

“When we assumed operation of the power plant, we saw the need for rehabilitating the FFWS system and equipment to better contribute to Pagasa and NIA’s disaster mitigation capabilities in times of flooding,” Rubio said.

He said that SNAP-Magat Inc. made representations with the Norwegian government for funding of the Magat FFWS rehabilitation to support the government and communities in disaster response, management and mitigation.

Nilo said that with this development, “our flood forecasting and warning system will not only benefit the downstream area of Magat dam but also the whole Cagayan river basin with the expansion of monitoring facilities along major tributaries.”

Alabastro said the project was part of the ongoing upgrading program of Pagasa’s monitoring facilities that started a couple of years ago.

Magat Dam is a multipurpose dam that serves as a source of hydroelectric power and irrigation water for about 85,000 hectares of agricultural lands. The dam is under the operational control of the NIA, while SNAP-Magat Inc. owns and operates the 360MW Magat hydroelectric power plant. SN Aboitiz Power (SNAP) is jointly owned by SN Power of Norway and the Aboitiz Group.